Investigation: Officers Justified In May Shooting

A state investigation has determined that officers with the were justified in .

Lt. Paul J. Paul Vance of the Connecticut Department of Public Safety said in a press release that the officers "reasonably believed that the use of deadly physical force was necessary to defend themselves from the imminent use of deadly force by [Kevin] Kenny." Vance said officers John Michaud, Timothy Henderson, Joshua Bergesen, Justin Clachrie and Frank Callender responded to the incident at 1110 Ocean Ave. and were involved in the shooting, although a police affidavit does not say that Bergesen used his weapon.

According to the affidavit by Detective William Pero, police responded to the apartment house after receiving a call that a woman had been shot inside the residence and that the shooter was still in the building. The caller gave a description of the shooter which Vance said matched Kenny.

Officers responding to the scene found Kenny outside the residence, where he told police he was the man they were looking for. The affidavit states that Kenny was shot by Clachrie, Henderson, and Callender after pointing a handgun at Henderson and refusing to drop it when ordered. Kenny told officers the weapon was a BB gun and that he was attempting to commit suicide by having the officers shoot him. He was taken to for treatment.

Kenny was on charges of second-degree threatening, first-degree reckless conduct, second-degree breach of peace, misuse of 911, and second-degree falsely reporting an incident. The said the case is non-disclosable and that more information on the status of the charges was unavailable.

The Connecticut State Police Eastern District Major Crime Squad conducted an investigation into the shooting at the request of the New London County State's Attorney. The investigation included an interview of Kenny, who admitted that he "had been depressed recently, so he fabricated the entire scenario in an effort to have the police shoot and kill him." State's Attorney Michael Regan determined at the close of the investigation that the use of deadly force was appropriate in the incident.

The Major Crime Squad is also investigating a . In that incident, Officer Thomas Northup shot 27-year-old Curtis Cunningham after a stolen delivery truck rolled over at the corner of Jefferson Ave. and Bank Street. According to the Department of Public Safety, Cunningham failed to show his hands while standing up inside the truck's cab.